PRESIDENT of the National Farmers Union, Minette Batters opened Mole Valley Farmers’ newly upgraded Lifton Feed Mill last week following a huge £4m investment.

More than 150 shareholders, members and customers of Mole Valley Farmers attended the opening event on June 7 to get a look at the new facility. They enjoyed a tour of the mill and a detailed insight into the workings of the mill.

The multi-million pound investment boosts Mole Valley Farmers’ manufacturing capabilities by improving the mill’s raw material storage capacity and enabling feed production to increase by around 20,000 tonnes to a total of 135,000 tonnes a year.

The construction at Lifton Feed Mill began in May 2022 and has taken around 12 months to complete.

Ms Batters, the special guest at the event who opened the upgraded mill alongside Mole Valley Farmers CEO, Jack Cordery praised the company for investing in the agricultural industry at a challenging and uncertain time.

She said: ‘It is easy to not recognise what you have, when you have it.

‘What you’re doing is one hundred percent the only way forward.

‘It is great for me to see such huge levels of investment here in a farming cooperative. It really does give a strong sign of strength with productivity, sustainability and profitability the keys to success.

‘If you don’t get those three things right you are not going to be able to deliver on the environment. To collaborate and use your collective power to buy together is the only model. Relish this moment because it really is the future.’

The project, on the Devon and Cornwall border, involved the construction of 12 new 70-tonne raw material bins and seven new 8-tonne mini bulk handling bins, resulting in a total on site storage capacity of between 900 to 1,000 tonnes.

The increased storage will ensure a resilient supply of animal feed with the upgrade also enhancing diet formulation accuracy, as well as improving efficiency and reducing manufacturing costs.

Mole Valley Farmers CEO, Jack Cordery, told members: ‘The purpose of today was to show you your mill.

‘As farmer shareholders you own the business and we are hugely proud to be a farmers cooperative.

‘It’s massively important at a time of such global uncertainty and such challenge and volatility within our markets that a strong cooperative movement and business like Mole Valley exists.

‘This investment will secure the site for many years to come.

‘The lower the cost of the production, the better it will be for farmers to help support a margin on their farms. Something we strive to help with every day.

‘This demonstrates our commitment to UK Agriculture.’

The upgrade also improves the environmental impact of the site, which is cleaner, with less noise, fewer lorry movements and reduced dust.